title: Health-related quality of life improves during the first six months after cardiac arrest and hypothermia treatment.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate whether there were any changes in and correlations between anxiety, depression and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) over time, between hospital discharge and one and six months after cardiac arrest (CA), in patients treated with therapeutic hypothermia (TH).
  
  
  METHODS
  During a 4-year period at three hospitals in Sweden, 26 patients were prospectively included after CA treated with TH. All patients completed the questionnaires Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Euroqol (EQ5D), Euroqol visual analogue scale (EQ-VAS) and Short Form 12 (SF12) at three occasions, at hospital discharge, and at one and 6 months after CA.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was improvement over time in HRQoL, the EQ5D index (p=0.002) and the SF12 physical component score (PCS) (p=0.005). Changes over time in anxiety and depression were not found. Seventy-three percent of patients had an EQ-VAS score below 70 (scale 0-100) on overall health status at discharge from hospital; at 6 months the corresponding figure was 41%. Physical problems were the most common complaint affecting HRQoL. A correlation was found between depression and HRQoL, and this was strongest at six months (rs=-0.44 to -0.71, p≤0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  HRQoL improves over the first 6 months after a CA. Patients reported lower levels of HRQoL on the physical as compared to mental component. The results indicate that the less anxiety and depression patients perceive, the better HRQoL they have and that time can be an important factor in recovery after CA.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical Sciences - Anaesthesiology & Intensive Care, Uppsala University, SE-751 85 Uppsala, Sweden. Electronic address: ing-marie.larsson@surgsci.uu.se.
authors.forename: Ing-Marie
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Larsson
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical Sciences - Anaesthesiology & Intensive Care, Uppsala University, SE-751 85 Uppsala, Sweden.
authors.forename: Ewa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Wallin
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical Sciences - Anaesthesiology & Intensive Care, Uppsala University, SE-751 85 Uppsala, Sweden.
authors.forename: Sten
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rubertsson
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Health and Occupational Studies, Department of Health and Caring Sciences, University of Gävle, SE-801 76 Gävle, Sweden; Department of Public Health and Caring Sciences, Uppsala University, SE-751 22 Uppsala, Sweden.
authors.forename: Marja-Leena
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Kristofferzon
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006323:Heart Arrest / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D007036:Hypothermia, Induced; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010351:Patient Discharge; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D015996:Survival Rate; D013548:Sweden; D013997:Time Factors
keywords: Cardiac arrest; Outcome; Quality of life; Therapeutic hypothermia